George Kittle names his all-time tight end Mount Rushmore
· Yahoo Sports
San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle knows his position well. He's been one of the best in the NFL throughout his career and has also helped shape some young players at his Tight End University events.
So, he also has takes on the best tight ends of all-time. He revealed his Mount Rushmore during his appearance on "New Heights," selecting four players he watched play rather than relying on history he didn't personally witness.
Visit freshyourfeel.com for more information.
Asked to pick his four greatest tight ends of all time, Kittle first ruled out Mike Ditka, saying it wouldn't be fair to include a player from before his time. So, he picked Travis Kelce, Rob Gronkowski, Tony Gonzalez and Dallas Clark. The Clark pick came down to two things: The former Indianapolis Colts star played at Iowa, like Kittle, and Clark had a dominating stat with quarterback Peyton Manning.
He had a playoff stat where him and [Peyton] Manning had like 54 first downs in a row together or something crazy like that. I was like, that's what makes you a great football player, man. You're reliable when your team needs you to be reliable. I'm also just a homer for Iowa tight ends. Sorry."
Kittle notably didn't include himself, but that tracks with his humble stature. Plus, Kittle still has a lot of football left in his career, whereas Gonzalez, Gronkowski and Clark are all retired and Kelce is on the back-end of his career.
The 49ers hope Kittle will be around for a lot longer as they try to make it back to the Super Bowl. But when his career is over, he may also be on that Mount Rushmore.
This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: George Kittle names his all-time tight end Mount Rushmore